Do you have an item in your wardrobe that still has the price tag on it, even though you bought it months ago? Or maybe you’ve worn it only once and you can’t see yourself wearing it again?
Sometimes that impulse buy is the best buy, you go home with an item that you enjoy wearing over and over. But often, it’s the worst buy. It was on SALE and you saved 50% on the retail price, but its been a waste of money as you go home and you realize that it just doesn’t work with the rest of your wardrobe, or it’s actually uncomfortable, or you don’t have the lifestyle that it requires. So it sits there, staring at you from your wardrobe, making you feel guilty for spending money on it.
That PPW ratio is not working for you.
Despite my shopping strike rate being a lot better these days, I still seem to buy the odd dud. So, how do we avoid this from happening?
The word intention comes to mind.
In my opinion, this whole capsule wardrobe thing relies on intention. You have an intention for your wardrobe – to be one that works for you; that brings you joy when you choose clothes from it each day, and that makes it effortless for you to get dressed each day.
In order to build this wardrobe, you shop with intent, which is basically the opposite of shopping on impulse, right?
The funny thing here though, is that if you are intentional about your wardrobe and you know which items you’re looking for, you can then buy on impulse when said item jumps out at you as you walk past the clothing section on your way to do a woolies shop *90% of my clients tell me that this is how they shop by the way*.
So here’s an example of an intentional-impulse-purchase that I experienced a few weeks back, when it was still cold! I was whizzing into Woolies in-between feeds, to exchange some baby clothes that Ruby had been given that she had already outgrown. As I half ran walked past Country Road, I spotted a long length jersey coat that I had had on my shopping list for winter this year. It was on the mannequin hence me spotting it so easily. The first thing I did was to check the label – 100% wool – winning; then I tried it on and loved it straight away.
It ticks all the boxes
- 100% wool – no acrylic or nylon crap
- I can layer with it or wear it on it’s own – versatility is always a bonus
- I’ve worn it at least 10 times already – PPW going strong!
The same thing happened with a pair of grey jeans that I picked up on the shop-label sale earlier this year…
I’d been looking for grey jeans for like 2 years, but I never seemed to find a pair that I felt looked good, (light-coloured pants are always a little tricky for me). I resisted the urge to ‘just buy a pair’, I needed them in my wardrobe but nothing I tried felt right and so I waited. Then a couple of months ago I saw the sale and spotted a pair of boyfriend Current Elliott’s at a ridiculously good price (I’m a big fan of the CE brand and I know their denim works on me). My size was available so I quickly clicked that ‘add to cart’ button before anyone else could snap them up.
I freaking love these jeans and couldn’t be happier with my purchase as you can see from my smiley face.
Right, so what to take out from this post?
Start building a list of your wardrobe must-haves/wants, so that next time you find yourself in the shops, if you spot an item you like and you know it’s on your list; you’re able to buy it – on impulse, with intention 😉
Love the jeans!
Such a useful blog post pips! Trying hard to buy less random stuff!!
So relevant, helpful info- just what I needed!
Thanks x